When Samsung launched the One UI 7 replace and the Galaxy S25, the corporate additionally debuted the Now Bar and Now Temporary, amongst different issues. Samsung’s Now Bar was presupposed to be Galaxy’s reply to the Dynamic Island, a smooth pill-shaped hub that promised to show your house and lock display screen into an data command middle.
Whereas the replace to One UI 8.0 improved the Now Bar a bit, it nonetheless wants plenty of work. Sadly, it is buggy and damaged, and my favourite characteristic not often works anymore.
What’s the Now Bar on Galaxy Telephones?
A hub full of knowledge
The Now Bar is a brand new device for all Samsung Galaxy telephones and tablets operating One UI 7.0, 8.0, or the newest replace, One UI 8.5, on the Galaxy S26 sequence.
As soon as enabled, the Now Bar shows useful data, equivalent to dwell notifications, music, maps and navigation instructions, translation data, and sports activities, on the backside of the lock display screen and infrequently within the notification shade. You possibly can learn extra about it in our Galaxy S25 Extremely overview.
The Now Bar is nice in idea, however it is a bit hacked collectively, struggles at instances, and would not work almost as usually as I believed it will. And, sadly, that is very true with sports activities scores and updates.
Sports activities on Samsung’s Now Bar are damaged
Good luck getting NHL scores and updates
Arguably, the perfect a part of Samsung’s Now Bar is the “Sports activities from Google” characteristic, which turns the Now Bar’s pill-shaped icon right into a dwell, always-updated, interactive sports activities widget.
When a workforce you observe from any main sport is about to play, the Now Bar begins showing on the lock display screen and residential display screen, with a countdown timer to when the sport begins. As soon as issues get going, you will get fixed updates and have a glanceable widget exhibiting the rating.
It is implausible when it really works, and I completely beloved it for the 2024-25 NFL season, NCAA Soccer, and for a second, the NHL. Sadly, none of that appears to work anymore, and I am not the one one.
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Everybody makes use of the Now Bar in another way, nevertheless it’s clear after scrolling by Reddit or the Samsung neighborhood boards that it is beloved for sports activities—when it really works.
On Reddit, you will discover tons of of feedback all through the final 12 months suggesting that the Now Bar sports activities scores don’t work. I observed the issue on the finish of the NFL season earlier this 12 months. In actual fact, I hadn’t seen the Now Bar as soon as in 2026, till I discovered my very own repair. It doesn’t matter what I attempted, it would not work. Issues have been supposed to enhance with One UI 8, not worsen.
You will discover countless solutions on Reddit for fixing Now Bar sports activities, and Samsung’s personal One UI 8.5 beta has suggestions for fixing sports activities scores, none of which appear to work for me.
How one can repair Now Bar not exhibiting Sports activities from Google
Get these scores again (perhaps)
Sadly, each tip or suggestion I’ve tried from Samsung, Google, or Reddit would not work. A number of even counsel clearing all app information and cache from the Google app, which may trigger all kinds of points in your cellphone. I would advocate avoiding that step in any respect prices, because it’s unlikely to repair the issue.
So, what would possibly truly get the Now Bar to begin exhibiting sports activities once more? The one repair I’ve discovered is to observe these steps:
- Go to Settings > Apps > faucet the filter button, and allow Present system apps.
- Seek for or open AlwaysOnDisplay, faucet on battery, and alter the setting from Optimized to Unrestricted.
- Observe those self same steps and alter the Google app from Optimized to Unrestricted.
- Subsequent, toggle the Now Bar Sports activities from Google settings off and again on.
- Restart your cellphone.
When you observe these steps, anticipate a workforce you are following on Google Sports activities to play, and it ought to begin working once more. Nonetheless, I’ve observed it nonetheless breaks occasionally, and that is extra of a short lived repair than something. It is also value mentioning that you need to have Customized Search and Net & App Exercise enabled within the Google App.
For no matter cause, this wonderful and once-promising characteristic by no means appears to work after I need it to probably the most. And that is with out mentioning that in case you by chance swipe the Now Bar away, there is no approach to get it again till your workforce performs once more subsequent week.
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Some customers have speculated that this is not Samsung’s fault, however reasonably adjustments made by Google to supply an identical characteristic with its At-a-glance widget. You may get an identical expertise in your Pixel, and you’ll even pin sports activities to your house display screen from contained in the Google app now, even on Galaxy telephones, in order that’s cool.
I’ve truly been utilizing the pin sports activities characteristic an increasing number of, not as a result of it is higher, however as a result of the Now Bar continues to be damaged. I am even on the One UI 8.5 beta on my Galaxy S25+, and I by no means know when the sports activities will work or not.
Room for enchancment
Similar to I mentioned when the Now Bar first arrived, there’s loads of room for enchancment. I totally anticipated Samsung to enhance the settings, person expertise, and controls with updates to One UI 8, or the upcoming One UI 8.5 launch, however that is not the case.
The Now Bar nonetheless wants tons of labor. For no matter cause, the characteristic received introduced, acquired a number of small updates, and was forgotten. It is one in all my favourite options when it really works; I simply want it labored on a regular basis.
